Tom Blackwell, National Post · Friday, Oct. 15, 2010

www.nationalpost.com/news/canada/press+irks+fertility+industry+regulator/3675206/story.html

The federal agency widely criticized for failing to carry out its key role of policing Canada's burgeoning fertility industry drafted a detailed, 10-page memo this summer on how to respond to unflattering coverage in the National Post and other media.

The Assisted Human Reproduction Canada communications plan speaks of unspecified inaccuracies in press reports, and insists that its board has complete confidence in the agency's management, despite the sudden resignation of three board members this spring. The unsigned document urges that the federally funded organization write oped articles and letters to the editor to counter "erroneous" media articles.

The agency seemed less anxious about why the three directors quit, though. It sent them only terse letters that failed to ask about their reasons for leaving, records obtained by the Post under the Access to Information Act indicate. One resignation letter had voiced concerns about possible financial mismanagement and stonewalling of board members who asked difficult questions.

The documents suggest the agency is more concerned about public image than the substantial questions it is supposed to address, said one critic.

"Doesn't it seem typical of government ... that all the energy and effort goes into trying to control public perception, rather than deal with the real issues?" said Diane Allen, head of the Infertility Network, a support group for parents. "They just seem to be busy protecting themselves."

AHRC itself did not respond to a request for comment on the memo.

First recommended by a Royal Commission 17 years ago, the agency opened in 2007, with one of its chief mandates being to license, inspect and police the fertility-treatment industry, as well as related scientific research. The underlying law banned the sale of eggs, sperm, embryos and surrogacy services.

Little regulation has occurred, though, and even clinics complain they get virtually no guidance from the organization on legal or ethical issues. AHRC cites the lack of specific regulations from Health Canada, which in turn says the regulatory process has been put on hold by a Quebec court challenge of the legislation.

In March, both Francoise Baylis, a respected bioethics professor at Dalhousie University, and Barbara Slater, a former Ontario Health Department official, unexpectedly left the board overseeing the agency, followed in May by Irene Ryll, who runs an Alberta support group for fertility patients.

Ms. Slater said in her resignation letter that she was worried about the agency's "prudence and diligence" in handling taxpayer funds. Prof. Baylis told the Post at the time that she felt the board, partly because of "group dynamics," simply could not ensure the agency did its job.

The Medical Post quoted Ms. Ryll as saying she had lost trust in the board.

Letters from AHRC to Ms. Slater and Prof. Baylis, obtained under an access-to-information request, merely thank them politely for their service. Both said yesterday that no one did an exit interview with them about why they were quitting.

The agency denied access to another 25 pages of documents about the resignations on the grounds they contained advice to government or Cabinet briefing material.

The communications plan, dated this July, describes stories that appeared first in the Post, then in Le Devoir, on the resignations, even speculating about what the Post might write about the agency next.

It repeatedly makes the point that the organization is constrained by the lack of government regulations, but in the meantime is encouraging compliance with the law as best it can.

tblackwell@nationalpost.com